Najib admits trolling Guan Eng to debate with him online

KUALA LUMPUR: Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak admits trolling Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng to debate issues with him online.

“What I want to now raise is on the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) with the Finance Minister whom I frequently debate with online.

“I troll him every day,” Najib said, drawing laughter from the floor when taking part in debates on the 11th Malaysia Plan in Parliament yesterday.

He cited Lim’s statement that the government would be able to recover RM10.02bil if it scraps the ECRL project.

“If the project is cancelled, based on practice, Exim Bank will recover the loans, so how are we getting RM10bil back? I am stumped and hope this will be clarified soon,” he said.

On the issue of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), Najib urged the current administration not to politicise the issue but make every effort to recover every sen back.

He cited his previous personal attempts in 2015 with the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince to reach an agreement over 1MBD loans with International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC).

“I called the Crown Prince for us to enter a settlement as I wanted to safeguard relations with the UAE and Malaysia,” he added.

In the 2016 settlement agreement, Najib claimed 1MBD would have been able to recover some RM6bil.

“I hope that the Pakatan government will pursue this as we want to get back our money,” he said.

He said authorities should travel to Abu Dhabi to record statements from individuals there.

“If they had cheated and stolen money, we need to claim back the money irrespective of who they are. Don’t let them get away,” he said.

Najib noted that he wanted to pursue the settlement agreement after the May 9 general election.

He said the Pakatan government was aware of the settlement agreement with IPIC and should make it public.